


The Queen's King

by InMoNochrome



Category: Transformers - All Media Types
Genre: AU, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Kings & Queens, M/M, ScorpidAU, Tragedy, Transformer Sparklings
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-14
Updated: 2019-07-13
Packaged: 2019-09-17 22:02:45
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 10,718
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16982604
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/InMoNochrome/pseuds/InMoNochrome
Summary: Jazz is the Queen of the Scorpids while Prowl is the enforcer who stumbles on his doorstep.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Searece](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Searece/gifts).



> Up to Chapter 6 is on ff.net - slowly reposting here and hoping to maybe fix up some of the earlier chapters while I'm at it.

It was dark, for there was no sky where the mecha of the Underground resided. It was cold outside and the only heat came in the form of exotic materials that each home was decorated with. The homes appeared to outsiders as a city of ruins and nothing more, unless one were to take a closer look and see the hidden cleaned up walkways.

The ruins hid a small palace in their midst that could only be found through investigation of the ruins first. It appeared to be in better condition than the ruins that surrounded it though was not much different from the other residencies’ inner workings. The palace was where the mecha of the Underground’s Queen resided with their King, if they had one such as this one.

\--

Sheer fabrics swayed with an uncommon breeze from a decorated balcony that led into the Queen and King’s berthroom and aroused the Queen into wakefulness. 

“Love?” 

A delicate yet no less dangerous servo reached out to the other side of the berth where his King should have been resting. The space was cold to the touch and caught the groggy Queen’s attention as he gazed at the cool empty space.

White optics beyond a clear visor stared from the space and over to the sheer curtains lining the exit to the balcony, where they’d gone still after his waking. He knew not where his King might have gone as they hadn’t been as close as he’d have liked as of late. The other had begun to grow distant from him even though the mech had claimed he loved him, the Queen was starting to find it harder to believe.

A soft sound came from behind him where a crib stood, and broke him from the trance he was in. He’d just given birth to a set of healthy twins and was still weak from the event but found energy in himself to rise and see to his young. He’d only glimpsed his King briefly after the birthing right before he’d gone into recharge and was quite unimpressed with his disappearing act.

He briefly stretched out and let his tail uncoil from his frame so he could properly get up.

His Horde had been ecstatic upon the twin’s birth, both healthy and active scorpiis that had way too much energy for the Queen to handle right away, though he did try his best. With the good news of his twins, the rest of his Horde would start bearing their own scorpiis now with their Queen’s blessing.

The Queen smiled at the thought of many young scorpids running around and felt a small thrill go down his spine with his own among them.

The sheer curtains began to sway again as though trying to warn the Queen before it was too late. The chill the fabric let into the room went straight to the Queen’s spark as he neared the crib and a sudden dread rose within him as the sounds turned more pained.

On the inside edge of the crib he could see, he could clearly make out energon spatters. His motions and steps became unsteady as he grew closer and could finally see one infant already grayed in the crib. The other lay half curled around his deceased twin, shuttering in pain and most likely trauma.

Quickly he scooped up the still online twin and cradled him close, and cooed softly as the infant started to gray at the tips of his pedes and helm fins. He wouldn’t let him fade if he could help it, and if it were a lost cause then he would make sure his last scorpii was not alone in his final moments.

He gently moved a blanket to cover the other’s offlined frame and placed one of the small toys next to him as he tried to comfort his twin. The deathblow appeared to be a broken neck. An adult could easily survive such an injury but not a young scorpii who’d barely lived a full day. The energon looked to just be a distraction to catch attention and not actually from any wounds inflicted, as neither twin did not appear to have any form of laceration or abuse. The twin in his arms in fact held no injuries and was probably just expected to follow his twin’s death out of trauma. 

Desperately he wrapped another blanket around the twin in his arms to warm him as he suddenly felt the little one’s armor begin to go cold. 

In a last bid to save his scorpii, the Queen let his chest armor slide back to reveal his spark and held the tiny frame closer to his exposed life force in hopes to jumpstart the other’s weak systems. He’d slumped down to the floor, his tail limp as he focused on the tiny scorpii in his arms and how its weak life force began to slowly but steadily strengthen.

He smiled weakly at the small success though couldn’t help the tears that streaked down his face from the loss as well. He huddled over his now unsteadily recharging scorpii. He may have saved him but he was going to need to remain close for some time until he would be able to be on his own with no side effects. 

That only left the question of who had snuck in and done such a thing. Everyone in his Horde knew he’d be resting in his weakened state. His guard, Trailbreaker, would normally remain by his side but with his King there he should not have needed him, which left only one answer to his question.

The cold breeze crept in again but this time on his side as he felt the sudden presence at his back attempt to creep up on him.

His optics went blank as he stared back up at the traitor looming over him. “My love,” the Queen stated in a blank tone, not giving away his suspicions even though he felt the other already knew them.

“This was rather unexpected,” His King spoke, though to no one in particular as he let his tail arch over his helm before he let it strike down in hopes to kill both the Queen and sparkling.

Expecting it when he’d seen his King’s tail move into striking position, the Queen shifted over just enough to take the hit alone directly to the right of his spark. “Such hatred my King holds for me,” he bit out harshly, acid dripping from his words as he let his own tail flick out at the other and just scraped his side as his King had realized his error and attempted to jump back.

“You shall regret your actions, my King.” The Queen rose to face his King steadily as he took care to hold his young one close to his still-exposed spark. His tail arched back and flared in aggression, its armored spikes flexed in a manner to provoke right before he let it strike at his King’s face.

His King attempted a bad dodge and ended up with nicked cables along his neck. He’d obviously known he’d made a mistake in killing one of the scorpiis and then trying to kill the other while still in his arms as his King beat a hasty retreat from their berthroom.

The Queen had come to the conclusion that his King had only wanted his position in ruling his Horde, yet the fool didn’t know the first thing about tending to the people. He never would have made it even if he had succeeded in offlining him and his lineage.

Calmly he followed after his King’s retreating form and made sure he did not jostle his young still in his arms as he did. He passed by several guards along the way, who balked at his appearance before they quickly moved into step with him. 

Trailbreaker was the first to follow. He’d frowned at the stream of energon coming from the deep gash next to his Queen’s spark and glanced worriedly at the lone bundled scorpii in his arms pressed close to the exposed spark. He remained silent as he walked a few paces behind and to the side of his Queen. Five other guards followed his lead as they passed and made their own assessment of the situation.

The retreating King they’d witnessed earlier was who they gathered had started the whole thing. Each of their armor flared the closer they felt they were to the wayward King and, they hoped, some justice. They trusted that their Queen already had the answers to the questions that went through all of their processors. They would follow whatever order given.

They made it out of the Queen’s palace and to the main entryway where other scorpids walked around and lived their lives, not realizing what had just taken place within the palace walls.

A ruckus further up though caught the attention of the guards and quickly had them moving in that direction to find a creator scorpid on the ground, having been shoved over to distract from the King making his escape. 

Trailbreaker gritted his denta as he glanced up and made optic contact with their ex-King; the other merely smirked back at him before disappearing into the crowd beyond as he was left to help the creator up and make sure everyone was uninjured. With a glance back at his Queen, he knew the other had seen the King’s smirk as he continued to stare where their ex-King had last been seen.

The Queen walked over to the group around the downed creator and knelt down to sit beside him to check the other over himself to make sure his King had left no marks on one of his Horde.

His people had started to gather around him as they began to notice the lack of one of his twins and the state their Queen was in. Slowly the story was expressed through the bond he shared with his Horde and soon all of them had their own forms of anger and betrayal written across their faces. He quickly soothed their pains with the knowledge that he’d managed to save one of his twins and that they would not let this bring them down, even though internally he would never forgive himself for not being able to protect his young.

Trailbreaker moved to his Queen’s back to act as a rest if he needed it. “My Queen,” his visor blazed as he looked down into his Queen’s white optics, “What would you have us do?” 

Finally the Queen found his composure beginning to crack as he stared back at his most loyal and trusted guard. He cast his optics back down to the still recharging form in his arms and blindly sought out his guard’s clawed servo for stability. His servo was firmly yet gingerly held in his guard’s large servo and he calmed, “Find him.”

He looked back up to meet his guard’s gaze and received a firm nod in understanding. “As you wish.” The sight of his guard pounding his other servo over his own chest in obedience was welcomed as he heard the telltale signs of the rest of his Horde following in Trailbreaker’s wake.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Queen is going through a little bit of a depression and is in need of some comfort.

The guilt had been slowly eating away at him and being alone with his one remaining scorpii had just made it worse. He wanted his other infant too, but it was his fault the other was gone now. If he’d been more aware or stayed up next to them all night or maybe even let them lay next to him. But he hadn’t.

His thoughts degraded from there. It was no longer his King’s fault but his own, and that thought wouldn’t go away smoothly. Pain filled his optics as he stared unseeingly.

The being in his arms sniffled softly and burrowed deeper against his chest and the Queen found himself curling over the tiny scorpii. Tears slid down his face, hidden by his sparklet’s tiny form. It was his own fault for trusting his now ex-King and not listening to his guard.

His guard had practically raised him when he’d found him as a scorpii, and more or less taught him of his duties as the new Queen. It was not something he had expected or even understood at the time. 

His form shook and shuttered in suppressed sobs as he thought of how stupid he had been. He was naïve and his King had known that and had used it to his advantage. 

That was how Trailbreaker found him, curled up and trembling over his surviving scorpii.

The guard was careful not to startle his Queen while in such a fragile state and had made sure to make enough noise so he knew someone was approaching. 

It had taken longer than he’d liked to finally look up at Trailbreaker, but even then he’d only glanced up and was quick to avert his optics from his guard and mentor. Trailbreaker had warned him that he did not think the other could be trusted, but he’d never brought the young Queen any solid evidence to back up his suspicions of the mech, only his instincts.

And that was the Queen’s downfall. 

He did not want to believe something that could not be proved, and look where that got him now. He was far too angry and ashamed of himself to even look at his guard.

Trailbreaker eventually sat down next to his mourning Queen, though he knew another storm was brewing beyond that tear streaked face.

Slowly he reached a servo out to brush the tiny scorpii’s cheek and smiled when the infant turned its face toward the gentle touch.

He watched as his Queen slowly lifted his helm and pulled back to watch his guard interact with his tiny scorpii. It was a sweet moment that pulled him out of his dark thoughts and had a small smile creeping up on his face.

His guard watched him through his own visor to gage his emotional state and chose to avoid the topic about their ex-King to instead focus on lighter things such as the young scorpii sniffing and chirping softly.

“What are you going to name him?” his guard asked softly in the quiet room. It had almost made the Queen shrink back into his darker thoughts at the cold silence but the small sounds his infant was making had him quickly refocusing on the present.

He smiled thoughtfully at the infant as he huffed and vented a few times. “How about…” His scorpii sure did make a lot of those sounds, but otherwise he was a fairly silent scorpii, which was a bit worrisome but the Queen quickly shook the thought away, “…Sniffer?” he said as he directed his question at Trailbreaker.

His guard laughed warmly at the choice and nodded his helm in approval, “I think that’s a fitting name for him.”

He flushed at the other’s approval in naming his scorpii and felt a small sense of pride overcome him, and he dismissed his earlier thoughts.

Trailbreaker smiled at his Queen as he began to calm and his EM field settled. His Queen was in need of care, preferably from someone he trusted and felt safe with.

The tiny scorpii gave a big yawn as he curled up more into the Queen’s arms. The two adult mechs both glanced down at the squirming tired scorpii and quickly decided their next course of action.

They’d had to make some rearrangements. The Queen would not go near his original room where the tragedy had happened, memories still too fresh in his mind for it.

Trailbreaker didn’t believe his Queen would ever return to that room, at least not until much time had passed.

His Queen had moved back into his original room where he’d stayed most of his life until he was old enough to take over the role as Queen. The room had a decent sized spare room connected to it that they chose to make Sniffer’s room. The only way in was through the Queen’s room, which was heavily guarded since the Queen’s life and family had been threatened. Even through the Queen’s room though, they had made the door to his scorpii’s room spark coded so not just anyone could get in.

Trailbreaker watched as his Queen rose and carried the little Sniffer to his hidden room. Glyphs lit up over the sealed door before they silently unlocked and slid apart. He gave his Queen space and stood at the threshold of the door as he watched him put the scorpii down into the plush crib. He glanced away as his small Queen sang a soft lullaby to the squirming infant who’d gotten fussy once out of his creator’s arms.

The lullaby brought a smiled to Trailbreaker’s face. It was one he used to sing to the lithe black mech himself when he was small. 

The Queen flipped a switch that illuminated the ceiling of the room into the night sky with thousands of stars twinkling above. He kissed Sniffer gently on the forehelm before he pulled back and out of the room. The doors sealed back shut until his next visit to retrieve his scorpii. 

Trailbreaker stared as his Queen’s weariness became visible and was quickly by his side to assist if his Queen called for it. He knew the black mech would not ask for it even when he wanted to, so it was up to him to decipher his Queen’s moods so that he could better serve him.

Quickly he walked his Queen over to the old berth in the room and led him further up onto it so that he could lie down in his weary state. He made to pull away so that he could stand and watch over him but found one of his arms being pulled back. With a glance back he stared into the pleading optics of his Queen. 

He couldn’t bring himself to pull away and turned back to face his monarch fully. “My Queen.”

“You know you don’t have to always call me that…” the lithe black mech said softly, almost as though saying it would break him, “You can call me Jazz.”

Trailbreaker was silent for a klik before he answered, “You know how I can be my Que-” 

“Please!” his Queen interrupted as he curled more into himself, “I need you to call me by my name.” Clear optics stared back up at him, piercing through his red visor. 

Trailbreaker felt Jazz’s servo fall from his arm and shook himself from his daze as he watched the smaller roll over and away from him.

Worried, Trailbreaker knelt on the berth and over his small Queen. “Jazz, are you all right?” his voice wavered as he stared down at his silent and still ward.

He vented a sigh when Jazz turned his face slightly to look up at him before shimmying over to give him room on the medium sized berth.

Carefully he maneuvered his large frame onto the berth to lie next to his Queen and froze when he felt Jazz move closer to hug his waist and press his face against the lower half of his chest. “Jazz?” 

“I just need something, someone to hold onto…someone I trust,” was the mumbled reply. He moved one servo down to cradle his Queen’s back as the other rested against him for comfort and protection.

The large scorpid relaxed more against the berth as he let the tension leave his frame. Jazz remained glued to his hip and he’d thought he had fallen into recharge until he began to speak. 

“I’m sorry I didn’t listen.”

Trailbreaker remained silent as he listened to Jazz’s low words, muffled by his own frame.

“I just brushed you off, even after all you’ve done for me.”

He looked down at Jazz when the other suddenly pulled back to look him in the face.

“I’m sorry! I was wrong and you were right not to trust him. I just…” Jazz trailed off as his helm began to droop forward.

Trailbreaker watched his Queen as he fell more into despair. It was in a sense his Queen’s fault for choosing the mech but it wasn’t his fault for the death of his scorpii. He also knew that Jazz was still a young Queen that had not come across many dark figures in his life. He’d guarded and practically raised him ever since he’d found him at the Queen’s Tree. He was virtually a newborn scorpii that lay at the Tree’s base, protected by its roots. 

As tragic as the situation was, it was more likely to make him stronger in the long run. 

He cupped his Queen’s cheek in one large servo. “I may not have trusted him, but I never would have expected this,” gently he tilted the other’s face upward, “You can’t let this tear you down. You still have a scorpii in the other room that needs your love and care.”

He smiled softly when his Queen met his optics and a bit of life relit them, “Not to mention your horde that wants the best for their Queen. You know how they’ll get if they knew you were trying to handle all of this on your own.” 

Trailbreaker grinned at the look Jazz gave him as though the smaller dreaded the rest of his horde ever finding out. “Don’t worry,” he said in a slight teasing voice, “Your secret is safe with me.”

“Thank you, Trailbreaker,” said Jazz with sincerity, the life coming back to his optics and leaving his frame feeling exhausted. A comfortable silence fell between them as Jazz soaked up his guard’s warmth and felt ease in his protection. He would move on from his ex-King and his actions to forever scar him.

He would create a shrine out of his old room for his lost scorpii so that he would always remember him. He’d make sure all signs of his King were destroyed, though he wasn’t quite up to weeding through the other’s items just yet. 

“Trailbreaker,” his voice was steady as he spoke his guard’s designation and didn’t move until the larger met his optics with his visor. His actions were smooth as he straddled the larger’s waist and continued with a calm tone, “I need you to do one other thing for me.” Clawed servodigits trailed over the guard’s codpiece before claws scratched lightly along its seam.

The larger easily moved back to a reclined position to give Jazz more access to work. “Anything.”

“I want you to make love to me, to remove his claim,” Jazz spoke quietly but with much fire in his voice with his need to rid himself of his King’s stench.

Trailbreaker brushed his Queen’s cheek before bringing their helms together, “As you wish.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And Prowl enters...

It was looking to be a quiet night so far, Prowl mused to himself as bots left the job site to head to their homes. All looked to be in good spirits as they went on their way and much of the reason that he and another enforcer were put on patrol there seemed to be nonexistent.

He'd taken this extra shift so he could be off for his brother’s sparkday that was coming up in the next few days. It also happened to be his own sparkday which he had originally opted to work, but when his brother asked, he'd promised Smokescreen he'd attend though he really didn't care for the venue: loud music, high grade, and Smokescreen's friends. Prowl didn't care for them, partying and drinking on work days and calling in sick the following.

With a shake of his helm, Prowl cleared his processor to get back to what he was doing.

The extra shift was grunt work, but the bots working onsite needed more security.

There were reports of odd happenings and bots being spooked almost to early graves. It was believed to be the work of mechlings with nothing better to do than play pranks on the unsuspecting mechs.

With a side-glance to his partner, Prowl felt that this would be a long night.

It was quiet as they patrolled around the site. Each took separate areas to make sure no one was where they weren't supposed to be.

The sound of slow pede steps suddenly caught Prowl's attention, coming from the other side of the heavy machinery he was standing. The steps were too light for a fully grown adult, closer to those of a mechling fresh out of his youngling upgrades. Like his namesake, Prowl crept closer to the edge of the equipment on his side and stopped.

He listened carefully as the intruder puzzled over which way to go before moving the way Prowl had, and quickly shifted to a run rather than a tiptoe.

Prowl recognized the other’s gait right away and as the youngling shot around the corner of the equipment, Prowl’s arm shot out to catch him by the scruff.

"Sideswipe, we've been over this," Prowl admonished as the youngling was about to attempt to put up a fight.

Sideswipe wilted after realizing who'd grabbed him and sheepishly rubbed the back of his helm. "Ah, I don't know what you're talking about?"

The enforcer arched an optic ridge at the guilty youngling. "So you've said before." He sent a quick comm. to his partner to let him know what he'd found before he dropped the youngling. “What are you doing out here?"

Sideswipe shifted uneasily from pede to pede as he glanced around. "We saw something here a few days ago."

He wouldn't meet Prowl's optics and looked ready to bolt at any klik. "We? As in you and Sunstreaker?" At the other's hesitant nod and widening optics, he continued, "And you expect me to believe that you two aren't the cause of the most recent disturbances here?"

"It wasn't us! We really saw someone, er, something, but it got away!" Sideswipe rushed out, trying to plead his case, which Prowl thought not uncommon of the youngling.

Prowl's comm. buzzed from an incoming call from his partner. "Go home Sideswipe, both of you. Sunstreaker is in the front waiting for you."

Sideswipe opened his mouth to protest but Prowl raised a servo to cut him off. "We'll look into it, but you're in a restricted area and need to leave." The two were always getting into some form of trouble and if Prowl could let them pass on the small things then he would. There was no use in bringing them back to the station when they could just as easily return home on their own. He was sure they had snuck out anyway and would prefer the orphanage didn't find out about their late night wanderings. Again.

Deflating, Sideswipe huffed and trotted off to the site’s entrance. Leaning on the side of caution Prowl commed his partner to have him walk them home to make sure the twins actually listened rather than return to the site once the officers turned their backs.

With a returned affirmative from the other officer, Prowl resumed his patrol around the site.

The night progressed smoothly with the troublesome duo now gone. It wasn't that Prowl didn't like them, but they became a big distraction when he should be focusing on his work. Whether there actually was another bot terrorizing the site, Prowl had yet find out, but having to constantly keep an optic on the mechlings wanderings would have made the endeavor impossible.

He made it to the back of the site where it looked like the workers had been digging. What they were digging for he did not know but as he approached the spot he noticed that when he stepped, the ground didn't feel right. It was almost as if the ground was hollow. Curious now, he approached the dig site and circled it slowly before he came to a stop facing the deepest part of the dugout ground.

Prowl paused in debate for a few kliks before he stepped down into the space. It felt solid beneath his pedes unlike the ground above, which made him think they were digging to find the hollow space beneath. Looking at it, it appeared the mechs had yet to find it even with how deep they'd already dug, and by Prowl's calculations, they should have already reached it. He stopped as he came to the wall closest to where the entrance of the space would be. With an outstretched arm, Prowl made to knock on the wall when running pedes sounded behind him.

With a quick turn, weapon drawn, Prowl felt his equilibrium fail as the unknown assailant crashed into him and pushed him back through the wall. Where there should have been a wall there was nothing and Prowl found himself reaching out to try and catch anything that might stop his fall, but the ground beat him to it.

His helm connected with the unforgiving ground and right before he blacked out, he made out a dark figure glancing back his way before it turned to continue forward.

\--

When Prowl came to, he couldn't determine the time as his internal clock registered only static along with his comms. He felt the back of his helm and frowned when his digits came back with a little energon, lit by his optics. With a glance up all he could see was yawning darkness all around him.

Accessing rarely used systems, the enforcer shifted an amber visor over his optics, now thankful that he had the mod, rarely used as it was. Going through the different settings, Prowl found the night vision and stood.

Prowl turned to take a look at his surroundings, careful not to trip on anything and found a dead end in one direction and a tunnel in the other. A cool breeze flowed down the tunnel which meant it must have some form of open space along it.

With only one option, Prowl moved down the tunnel and thanked Primus that he'd had the foresight to send Sideswipe home, knowing the little hellion would likely have ended up in the tunnel in Prowl's stead. Since the youngling would likely come back to the site the following night, Prowl would be sure to keep his optic out, if he made his own way out of the dark space. All was quiet minus the low whistling from the wind whipping through the tunnel and the soft drip of condensation from the cave walls, which had Prowl calm for the time being.

He grazed one servo along the wall as he took calculated steps down the tunnel, so he felt the change in texture before he actually saw it. Glancing over the intricate carvings his digits grazed, Prowl found that the tunnel from there on seemed to be smoothed and polished, no longer rough and jagged.

The sound of a large weight hitting the ground had the enforcer on high alert as he looked around for signs of the sound. There was a groan of pain a little ahead where Prowl guessed must be a curve in the passage.

Pulling out his weapon, Prowl inched closer to the pained sound, and he stopped to vent before he peered around the corner, his gun drawn in front of him. No one was there from what he could see. The groan came again and had Prowl quickly looking down at the ground to where a fairly large mech frame lay curled on his side.

The mech clutched his side and Prowl could see the glow of energon seeping from behind the mech’s digits. This mech could be just like him, lost in this tunnel, or he could be an enemy, originally here to offline him, but at the moment Prowl didn't care and needed some answers. With a cursory glance to make sure they were alone, Prowl re-subspaced his weapon in exchange for a first aid kit.

The mech was not much taller than himself as far as Prowl could tell but was pretty heavy. He was thankful that he only needed to roll the mech to his back so he could get to the injured side. Removing the rather sharp claws from the injury though was a mission in itself as he didn't want the mech to awaken and lash out. He settled on magnetizing the mech’s servos to a hip and the mech’s chest.

Once deemed safe, Prowl made another look around before he worked on quickly wiping up what energon he could to see the damage and capping the mech’s lines within the injury. The mech hissed at the rough treatment to his more delicate cables but Prowl couldn't be bothered as he tried to patch the mech up.

Deeming the patch good enough, Prowl stood and walked around the space they were in. It was a rectangular space but still part of the passageway, though the entrance and exit to the space were at angles to the space, like a "Z," which meant Prowl couldn't tell if anyone might be approaching the area which put the enforcer on edge.

The familiar grunt of his most recent patient had him turning away from the still unexplored part of the tunnel. He waited in silence as the mech roused, knowing the backlash that would come when the other realized he was bound to his own frame.

As predicted, the mech panicked and struggled hard before Prowl cleared his vents to get the mech’s attention. The irritated lashing of a tail caught the Enforcer’s attention and had him wondering if this was the "something" Sideswipe had been referring. Why would they be around the construction site though? Unless this tunnel happened to be their home, then maybe they didn't like how close the construction was coming to them?

"You patch me up?"

The deep rumbling voice snapped the enforcer out of his train of thought as he glanced back to the mech’s visored face.

"I did." He waited for a response. When the other merely hummed in thought but otherwise remained silent, Prowl continued, "I need your assistance with finding the exit."

Prowl could see the other's visor brighten, but in surprise or interest, he could not tell. Before he could go any further, his sensory panels detected a shift in the air behind him.

Quickly the enforcer dove forward and out of the way of the unknown assailant’s grasp. He came out of his dive with pistol in hand as he looked up at three more mechs that appeared to be of the same origin as the bound mech now behind him, which he wouls soon fine he’d regret turning his back to. He should have paid more attention to the tail as he now found the claw end of it jammed up into the cabling and joints of his wings. It wasn't a crippling pain but more uncomfortable and kept him still, though he could still shoot if threatened any more than he currently felt.

The mechs around him spoke to each other in their own tongue as Prowl watched and kept his guard up.

"Unbind our friend and we'll show you to the exit," one spoke to him and he admitted to himself that nothing about this felt safe, but there was nothing else he could do besides shoot and hope to survive.

Over a klik of debate Prowl decided to take his chances with the mechs and easily unmagnetized the bound mech’s servos. The hit to the back of the helm was not unexpected but Prowl had hoped they could have hit him somewhere not the back of his helm as he'd already landed on it once that day, thank you.

"The Queen will want to see him."


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prowl meets the Queen

Jazz glared out the windows that made up the exterior wall of the room. He could feel something wasn't right and the small twinge in his spark didn't help matters.

He'd sent out more guards to one of the exit tunnels when he felt Trailbreaker fall. He could only think of who or what had overpowered the large mech, unless maybe it was from behind which seemed more likely as it was so sudden.

He almost had a panic attack when he felt the other disappear before he realized that he wasn't dead... yet. Jazz couldn't stand to lose anyone else close to him. He was sure that if he lost Trailbreaker too, he wouldn't be able to function properly and his horde would suffer for his weakness.

He brushed his consciousness against his scorpii, still recharging in his crib in the safety of his room. The little one was still out like a light, thankfully, for Jazz didn't want his baby to be in need of him when his own mental state was still in question.

He vented slowly to calm himself as he listened to his mechs’ sparkpulses as they left for the tunnels in search of their downed companion.

Why did it have to be Trailbreaker, he thought selfishly. He'd berate himself more on it later, but the truth of the matter was that Trailbreaker was the only mech he trusted enough to open up to about everything. He didn't want to burden his horde with his own problems, but Trailbreaker on the other servo offered to listen and help where he could. He went beyond the line of duty to help him at his weakest without judgement.

Jazz could never repay the other for all that he'd done for him.

He paused in his staring out the glass when he felt one of his guards approaching and turned to greet them.

"My Queen.” The mech bowed quickly before standing at attention

"Report."

"Trailbreaker along with the others have been retrieved..." the mech paused.

Jazz caught the other’s hesitation and turned to face the mech reporting. "What is it?" he fretted over the reason for the abrupt pause but was able to push down his fears and kept a neutral expression.

"They also retrieved an Overworld mech... He was found near Trailbreaker," the mech hesitantly met his Queens optics, "We are still uncertain of his role in this… incident."

Jazz’s armor visibly flared before he turned back to the large window and let it resettle. "Keep two Guards posted at the Overmech’s door." They still didn't know the whole story yet but Jazz didn't want to take any chances with this unknown mech. How had he gotten in and did he incapacitate the mechs stationed in the tunnel? "We still don't know if this mech is a threat or not." He needed to speak to Trailbreaker; he would know if the mech was the one who got the drop on him or not. "Have medics ready for when they come in, we are expecting injured." With that, Jazz felt a twinge from Sniffer in the other room and quickly dismissed the messenger before he moved to the hidden door to his scorpii’s room to settle the tiny spark.

\--

Amber optics snapped open with a start. He stared intently at the unfamiliar ceiling and traced every line until he finally convinced himself that he was not dreaming.

He had fallen (been pushed really) into a tunnel of some kind. He couldn't find the exit and instead ended up helping a complete stranger with an unknown frametype. Getting knocked in the helm for his troubles didn't seem worth it.

Now that he'd sorted through that, it was time to figure out exactly where he was and how to get back. In an attempt to move he realized his servos were cuffed together in front of him, 'typical' and that there was a nasty twinge in his back.

He tried his comm as an afterthought but found only static on the other end. If he really was under Cybertron's surface then it made sense that he'd have no signal. His partner was probably wondering where he was at this point.

He ground his denta as he forced himself to sit up and threw his legs over the berth’s edge. Optics pale as his frame took in the damage he'd received to his back. Though minor, it did clip a few sensitive lines while his processor already ran a defrag for his helm damage.

With a cursory look around the room, Prowl saw only saw two small windows high up on the walls, letting an unnatural blue light into the room and only two doors, one of which led to washracks. It wasn't the typical prison cell if that's what it was supposed to be, and going by the location of the windows, the room was most likely located in the basement of a building. By the placement and that there were no other noticeable doors, he'd say the other door was the exit, which he was certain was locked if the cuffs on his wrists were anything to go by.

He understood these mechs’ hesitancy since he was not from wherever here was, but even so, he was still a mech much like them, had even helped one of their own. He needed to speak with whoever was in charge.

With that thought in mind he headed for the door but before he made it there, he heard the sound of something clink in the door right before it slid open.

He was greeted by one large mech with a red visor and recognized him as the mech in the tunnel. Two more large mechs stood just outside the door with their own red optics trained on him. When he went to open his mouth he was forced to stop himself as a smaller mech stepped out from around the other.

Prowl stared at the mech who also sported a tail much like the other mechs. Two horns swept back regally on his helm and his optics shone a pale white that seemed to pierce right through him when those optics snapped to his own.

He could tell just by the way this mech held himself that he was in charge. Though the smallest out of all the other mechs present, he appeared to garner great respect from the others.

The others remained silent with helms mostly bowed while some stared at Prowl with suspicion.

Prowl straightened his back as he held himself tall. He wasn't afraid of these mechs but there were a large number of them. Wings shot into a high "V" when the smaller mech circled behind him.

The Praxian hadn't been paying attention as his focus shifted on the subdued yet antsy mechs in front of him. He was too distracted to notice the smaller move until he was at Prowl's back.

He felt a feather light touch to the cables and joints of his wings which caused him to tense even more.

"It still hurts?"

Prowl paused at the question and the melodic voice that asked it before he hesitantly peered over his shoulder to look at the smaller. He remained tense having turned away from the larger mechs in the room that could easily cause him great damage to gaze at the speaker. "It does."

There was a moment of silence as the other’s optics unfocused and he bowed his helm. Optics narrowed in suspicion until a mech came running into the room and to his side.

Prowl stared at the mech in mild mistrust as they pulled out a injector with something that he really didn't want to find out about and stepped back.

The smaller pushed on his back which made him wince as the cables crushed together.

"He will not hurt you; he's a medic," the smaller assured while still pressing him forward.

"Of course," was Prowl's flat response as he allowed the medic closer but kept a sharp optic on the group still in the doorway.

He could only assume the smaller had caught on to his glaring as he briefly stepped around the larger and closed the door, leaving Prowl with just the medic, the smaller mech, and the larger he'd helped.

It was better but now he was in a closed room with them. His sensory panels dropped marginally and that alone made him wince as the cables pinched together uncomfortably.

The medic was quick with his scans and diagnoses, the Praxian noted while he tried to get a read on what the other two mechs in the room were discussing. Swiftly the medic injected a painkiller into the area between his wings, which had a quick numbing affect that caused him to vent a sigh of relief.

"If you're feeling better, I'd like to ask you some questions," the smaller started as he re-approached Prowl.

"I'm sure you have plenty," Prowl responded evenly while he absently heard the medic leave the room.

With a fluid grace, the smaller seated himself on one of the few chairs within the room before responding, "Why were you in the tunnel?"

"It wasn't intentional I can assure you," he answered with as little disrespect as possible.

The smaller narrowed his optics. "How did you find the tunnel? There are spells around every entrance, you should not have been able to find them."

"I didn't know it was a tunnel until I was pushed through it.” He saw the other’s armor twitch at his answers and squared his shoulders, ready for the other to strike out.

"You would have had to mentally have known the wall wasn't real for you to have even been able to go through it," the smaller argued.

"Well not much goes through a processor when you're violently being pushed into said /wall/," Prowl responded in more annoyance. He had been thinking something wasn't right with the wall but he hadn't thought anything right before he literally ended up through it.

The smaller glared at him while his tail followed suit and flared aggressively. "And who exactly pushed you?"

Prowl paused unsure of how to answer. He could already tell the other wouldn't like the truth that he hadn't gotten a good look at the mech and didn't know, but there was also no logic in lying about it either. "It was dark, I could only see that they also had a tail such as your friend over there," he gestured to the large red visored mech.

He was surprised to find that the smaller didn't lash out at his answer but looked more contemplative as though he was trying to narrow down who it could have been.

The smaller directed his stare to the large mech. "Did the one who attacked you say anything?"

"I'm sorry my Queen, but he attacked me from behind and I lost consciousness shortly after. I never saw his face."

A Queen? Cybertron had no monarchs other than the Prime himself.

"And you're sure it wasn't this mech?" The Queen continued, with a gesture in Prowl's direction.

"The wound on my side was inflicted by claws which this mech does not have." There was a tense silence as the two stared at each other.

He was thankful that the mech he'd patched up was at least defending him, but now his curiosity was piqued and he also wanted to know who it was that had entered the tunnel with him and why.

The two spoke quietly so Prowl wouldn't overhear. His wings though told him little of the conversation but he was able to make a few assumptions, "Does the Queen have any enemies?"

It wasn't unusual for rulers to have them anyway and going by the smaller's worried tone of what he could hear, there was a high chance the other knew who the intruder was.

The small mech suddenly stood and headed for the door, "You will stay here until I decide what to do with you."

"Excuse me? I have answered your questions and done nothing to harm you or your own," Prowl started with a slight slip of a temper but quickly got it under control.

The other paused as the door slid open. He looked back at Prowl and surprised the Praxian with a small smile. "You have quite the bearings to speak to me like that," Prowl’s wings shot up in anger at the mech’s tone, "But you're right, you did answer my questions. You are allowed to leave this room and wander the castle."

The lithe mech glanced over to the large visored mech still in the room, "Trailbreaker here will be your guide." He turned fully to face Prowl, "There are certain rooms you're not allowed, he will let you know which ones." And with that, the smaller turned back to leave.

Prowl nodded slowly. He'd get a chance to possibly find an exit now, but with the big mech watching him, it just made the task that much more challenging.

"And your designation?" Prowl spoke up before the Queen was completely out of audio range.

There was a pause as the Queen’s clawed pedes clicked at the ground.

"It's Jazz."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a while since I wrote these chapters so hopefully I haven't forgotten anything as I write the later chaoters ^^' But I'm working hard to finish this within the year!


	5. Chapter 5

It wasn't too much of a task to get Trailbreaker to uncuff him, as the mech made it quite clear to him that he knew Prowl wasn't his attacker. He was pretty sure that none of the others would have released him without the Queen’s explicit request though.

Unlike the others, Trailbreaker seemed to almost stand as an equal next to the Queen. He spoke as though they were on the same footing, as friends and as though the smaller was not the /ruler/ of wherever here was. 

The mech took him down several halls until they came to a room. The dark mech typed in the code and allowed Prowl entrance before he followed after. 

Prowl looked around the room, clearly personal quarters going by the unkept berth at the far wall. He took his chance to walk over to a door that led out to a balcony. He needed to see where he was and to his shock found that he really was underground in what appeared to be a large cavern. 

There were no openings above to let Cybertron's sun shine through. Instead, there was a multitude of moving glowing lights that filled the /sky/. Reaching out quickly, Prowl grasped one of the glowing lights as it ventured too close and upon closer inspection revealed them to be tiny insectoids with glowing bulbs attached to their backs.

Optics scanned the area for any potential exits, but the place was a lot bigger than he’d expected. A city below the surface but disguised as ruins? Or was this place the remains of a city from long ago? The building he was currently in was much taller and most likely bigger than the city he looked down on.

He could see some mechs walking along the streets, no one in an alternate form, could they not transform?

Prowl was pulled from his thoughts at the sound of Trailbreaker moving things around back inside. Upon reentering the room he found Trailbreaker clearing a space from a wall before he pulled out a berth from a hidden compartment in said wall.

The tall mech turned to Prowl, "You will be recharging here until my Queen decides what to do with you."

Prowl nodded though uncertain if he should wait for that decision.

"He won't kill you, if that's what you're thinking," The visored mech laughed as he headed for the door and motioned Prowl to follow.

The corridors winded so much that Prowl had a bit of trouble mapping out his steps to the layout of the building. He needed to look for markers to use so he could later find his way around.

They passed a number of guards in the building before they eventually made it outside and even then he could see more guards posted. That could pose a problem.

"Jazz tightened security," Trailbreaker murmured to himself as he looked around before he picked a direction to go. 

They walked through the streets, many of the mechs giving Prowl curious looks as they passed, "Why do you live underground?" He ignored the looks, unfazed by their scrutiny.

Trailbreaker glanced back at him before he turned back forward and slowed his pace so they were walking side by side, "Before the planet had Primes, we lived on Cybertron's surface the same as you."

Prowl stared, surprised by that piece of information.

"I'm assuming by the look on your face that we are not in any of your texts," the larger mech chuckled, "It makes sense, the Primes did not like us because we did not follow them."

"I'm surprised that your kind are not in any historical texts," Prowl's optics narrowed, skeptical of the mechs words, "That's quite a bit of withheld information,"

"It is what it is," the larger shrugged as they came up to a familiar tunnel.

Prowl glanced over questioningly.

"It doesn't take us long to find something when we put our minds to it," The large mech replied before he pierced Prowl with his visor, "And you were a detective." 

Prowl stared in surprise that they would know or /learn/ that bit of information in such a short time, including the past tense.

He looked back to the tunnel, "You think I can find him then," he stated, knowing why they were here now.

Trailbreaker nodded, "I'm not certain if he's in the tunnels anymore but I know he hasn't made it to the ((palace)) yet."

Prowl glanced over at the big mech, "What makes you so sure?"

The visored mech smiled, "Because there're only two ways in and both mean going through the city."

"You trust that someone would say something if he’s seen?" Prowl questioned skeptically. 

"I know that anyone who sees him will speak up," Trailbreaker answered with conviction in his tone.

"And if 'he' has changed his appearance? What then?" He crossed his arms, unable to believe that all of these mechs would be so loyal. After all, one was currently rebelling.

Trailbreaker shook his helm, "Even if no one sees him, Jazz will know as he gets closer."

That was something he’d been curious about when the medic had rushed to his side earlier. An internal comm. made sense but these mechs didn’t look like they knew what a comm. was, “How would he know exactly?”

“We share a link with him. He knows where we are at all times, all he has to do is /look/.” Trailbreaker answered almost wistfully.

Prowl frowned, “He can command mechs through his mind? Are you able to locate him the same as he can you?” 

Trailbreaker shook his helm in the negative, “He can tell us through the link of his location but nothing more.”

Well, that was handy for the Queen, Prowl thought. He was sure he wasn’t being told something but he didn’t push on the matter, “So why can’t he just locate this mech right now? Would save us the trouble of looking.”

Trailbreaker shook his helm again, but remained silent as he stared off into space, contemplating his next words, “This mech is not from our Horde.”

Prowl stared, sensory panels remained still as he thought that over, “But... Jazz will know once the mech gets closer? That doesn’t make any sense,” He argued, his field filled with irritation.

“There’s something you’re not telling me and this information could help us locate this mech,” The Praxian attempted to reason when the large black mech just turned away.

“It’s not my place to tell.”

Prowl’s vents hissed at the words but chose to drop it since the mech clearly had no plans to tell him.

He moved back into the tunnel to look around, his advanced sensors picked up a few trails and worked to decipher them from older ones. 

Most of the trails followed the same path in and out of the tunnels minus a select few that strayed off but were too small to be any of the guard mechs or a mech in general. Probably small animals like petrorats. Prowl frowned at the lack of any other trails, “Would this mech happen to know the guard rotation?”

Trailbreaker paused and frowned as he glanced down in contemplation, “Possibly.”

Prowl’s optics snapped over to the dark mech. “...You know this mech personally, don’t you?”

Trailbreaker remained silent and walked away down the trail.

Prowl followed at a distance, “Or is it Jazz that knows this mech so well.” He was looking for a reaction so was ready when the mech suddenly turned and made a grab for his collar faring. Prowl stepped back just out of reach and returned the other’s dark glare, “I think that’s something you should have mentioned.”

The Scorpid growled, “It was not my place to say.” He turned back around, “You will need to speak to Jazz about anything more.”

Prowl hummed before he also began to follow again, “I think I’ll have to do just that.”

—

Jazz was nervous. He knew the other was getting closer, he could feel it. He paced back and forth in his room unable to remain still with so many thoughts rushing through his helm.

While their bond had never been fully complete it was completely severed either. He’d been wary to cut the thread keeping them together until he knew the other was permanently incapacitated.

Also, there was Sniffer. He wasn’t sure how the scorpii would react with the loss of a creator too and at the moment Jazz was much too protective over the small thing. 

At the same time though, he didn’t know how much his ex could feel from their sparkling. Would he be able to find Sniffer through the creator bond?

Jazz grit his denta and clenched his fists but quickly forced himself to calm when he felt the sleepy presence of his scorpii stir at Jazz’s emotions. He took a few calming vents and hummed through the creator bond to lull Sniffer back to recharge.

Task done, he moved over to his berth with a tired sigh and sat on the edge. He glanced out the large windows where he could see their underground city in all its glory. 

Strings of light wound around towering beams at several corners giving off an ethereal light. The lightningbugs flew around through the open space above giving off the appearance of a living night sky. Maybe one day they would be welcome on the surface again he mused to himself with little hope. 

He dropped back onto his berth with a loud exhale. Since his king had turned on him, it was rare for him to have a peaceful recharge unless someone was nearby. He’d taken to venturing into Sniffer’s hidden room and curling up with his little scorpii. Those were the times he felt at the most peace, just listening to his little’s spark pulse.

-

Trailbreaker had led them back to his room but had to leave to attend to his own duties, giving Prowl the chance to explore without a chaperone. While he understood the dark mechs intentions; not to mention he was probably ordered to watch him, Prowl himself couldn’t concentrate with the other’s constant hovering.

So now he found himself wandering the halls trying to get a layout of the building without being seen, which wasn’t as hard as it sounded. Trailbreaker probably wouldn’t be happy about that especially since Jazz had ‘upped’ the security.

He’d walked through a few dining rooms that looked to be in pretty good condition, though he couldn’t imagine these mechs actually eating there. It was offputting that an entire civilization was living right under their pedes but it sounded like their leaders had always known.

He continued on in his search for where the Queen’s room might be. When he finally located the room there was not a single guard down that hall. Prowl glanced around with a frown. Surely the Queen would have his own guard stationed at his door? Or at least in the hall somewhere where the door could be observed. Trailbreaker has not brought him this way thus it shouldn’t be off-limits; if not, that was his story and he would stick with it.

He rapped his knuckles against the door and waited for a response. When none came he attempted the door handle and was surprised to find it unlocked. He glanced around to see if anyone was watching before he slipped inside.

On first glance, it was obviously apparent that the room hadn’t been used in a while. A layer of dust covered what looked to be a sitting room. As he continued to venture inside, the room turned out to be much larger than he expected and opened up into a once lavish berth room with a balcony. 

This room was also covered in dust and uninhabited like the rest of the room. The berth sheets were unmade and frozen in time. Prowl could just make out the trail from the berth to a small room just behind it.

Hesitantly he moved further into the room and around the berth. He paused briefly at a stain of energon on the floor right on the outside of the small room. Looking past the stain he laid his optics on a lone crib that sat abandoned. He could feel a tension in the room and was hesitant to approach but felt this had to do with the mystery mech suddenly appearing.

“You shouldn’t be in here.”

Sensory panels froze on Prowl’s back as he turned to look at Jazz standing behind him. He hadn’t heard anyone come in and his panels should have picked up on any movement behind him, “Who’s room is this?” 

The Queen didn’t answer for a long time before he finally walked passed Prowl and over to the empty crib, “...It was mine.”

Prowl waited for more but when no more was said took that as his queue to move closer to the crib. Optics narrowed and focused in on the energon stains in the crib, “And the crib?”

The Queen’s clear visor went white, shielding his optics before he spoke, “My scorpiis or sparklings as your lot call them.”

Prowl looked at the Queen’s pale visor and then to his clenched his servos at the crib's edge, “So where are they now?” He has a pretty good hunch but needed Jazz to confirm.

“One is offline while the other is somewhere safe,” Jazz snapped his visor to him like Prowl was prey, clearly still not fully trusting. That Prowl had found this room while ‘snooping’ probably didn’t help matters.

“Twins?” He questioned, surprised by the news, “And the other is fine?”

“As fine as can be,” Jazz shrugged as he pulled away from the crib, “It’s hard to say how much trauma there is.” His shoulders sagged in exhaustion, “He’s healthy though.”

Prowl’s optics dimmed in thought, “This has something to do with that mech showing up, doesn’t it?” 

Jazz glanced back in the Praxian’s direction and gave a long pause before he nodded slowly, “It does.”

“And the relation?” Because Prowl knew there was something. Not to mention how he didn’t say where exactly his other offspring was, but clearly his other offspring was somewhere he trusted no one would find.

The Queen straightened and turned to face Prowl fully, “He was my King.” He took a few steps closer, getting into Prowl’s personal space and tilted his helm as though in thought, “That’s what you’ve been waiting for me to say isn’t it?”

Prowl had to abort his armor flaring at the non-threat and forced himself to continue with his line of questioning, “I’m sure your King had some followers of his own.”

The dark mech took a step back, giving Prowl his space, “Perhaps.” He turned back to Prowl letting his visor clear, “but I would have known if they were mine...”

A tense silence reigned between them as Jazz’s armor flared in aggression. His thoughts raced as he tried to latch onto all of his links with his horde, searching for the loose ends.

Prowl didn’t see it till it was too late and a spear burst through the Queen’s chest through his back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for slow updates. I have 2 more chapters already written but I was trying to hold off till it was complete. sadly that's taking longer than expected as my muse has gone away on vacation for a bit


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